


Waterlogged

by 68932



Category: Ghost Trick: Phantom Detective
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2013-12-19
Updated: 2013-12-19
Packaged: 2018-01-05 03:21:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,100
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1089004
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/68932/pseuds/68932
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>On the job, old friends meet again.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Waterlogged

With a last glance back, Jeego heaves the body up to the railing, wiping his hands on the front of his suit. Grinning down at the man, he takes a moment to admire his handiwork before he sentences the guy to an afterlife of being fishfood. Dressed in a suit himself, the man nevertheless bears the mark of someone who is untouchable, soft threads of the impeccable double-breasted jacket catching the light, and golden cufflinks knocking together at this unexpected treatment. The thought makes Jeego laugh. Untouchable? What a joke. We all rot in the end. The worms are going to gnaw through your coffin no matter how much it cost. Barking out a laugh, he kicks the man square in the chest, sending up a spray of blood from the ragged hole in the man's body, which spatters against the back of the railing in one last protest before the corpse falls. Jeego loves his job. He's halfway through wishing you could fit a shotgun in your pocket when a voice cuts him short. "You have no finesse. In a few days that's going to float back up."

 

Jeego laughs. Of course he's here. Just can't stay in his own territory, can he? "So? You think that isn't exactly what I want? There's no better message than a waterlogged corpse bobbing outside your lakefront mansion." Tengo grimaces. It's exactly the other man's style. Messy, crude, and just a little bit too showy. Of course, it would probably work. The lady of the house is freshly caught and ten years too young for her husband. Everyone knows trophy wives can't stand the sight of blood, and Tengo can't even begin to imagine the reaction to a fish-eaten body knocking against their dock to the rhythm of every passing motorboat. That's the benefit of staying married, he supposes. Grow old and ugly together, and she'll push that body back into the current with the tip of one overpriced heel before she bats an eyelash, having been stained by your illicit activities a long time ago. Put up with the wrinkles, and the heavy eyeshadow, and the stomach that sags after three kids, and you've got someone that does your dirty work for free. Not such a bad deal, Tengo thinks. Not that he's in the position to be considering marriage or a mansion that looks out over the water.

 

"So, what are you doing here anyway? You didn't come all this way just to watch me heave this ugly mug into the water, did you?" A tiny smile crosses Tengo's lips, the other man's remark reminding him of his duty. Careful not to scuff his well-polished shoes, he drags a matching body from the shadows. Jeego smirks. "The same thing, huh? Who's yours?" Older man drawing a cigarette from his suit pocket, the snick of a lighter follows soon after. Kneeling to lash a cinderblock to the torso, he doesn't pause before answering, this exchange grown well-worn and easy from years of repetition, sharp teeth and long tongues wrapping around each word until it's second nature to both of them. "Just someone who was getting in the way." With a stifled grunt, Tengo pulls the knot tight. "He comes from the same place as yours, actually. You didn't think I keep up the politics of the wealthy for fun, did you?" Jeego grins, tapping ash into the gray water far below. "Two clients who want the same thing, huh? This could be interesting. By the way, you might want to add another cinderblock there. Don't want him slipping loose and making a surprise appearance, do you?" 

 

His lips curling, the younger man turns away. If it wasn't for this conversation, he would already have the second block tied, and that body rotting at the bottom of the river. He isn't stupid, despite what Jeego seems determined to think. Angry strokes pull tight the second cinderblock, bunching the elbows of his expensive suit. Tempted at first to curse, he pauses, remembering the payday that will come after the disposal of the man beneath him. Allowing a small smile to cross his lips, he heaves the body up onto the railing. "Unlike yours, my client prefers cleanliness." With a careless flick of his hand, he sends the body to meet the opaque water, where it sends up a splash that would be comical in any other context. Jeego nods, spitting cigarette smoke with every word. "Can't argue with the client." The second part is unspoken, but they both know it. 'How lucky that the client's ideals always match yours.' Over the years both of them have learned who to work for, and who to stay away from. Their ties, scuffed shoes, even specks of dust on the lapel or callouses on the fingers speak volumes to the two men. 

 

Staring down at the gray waters, Tengo wonders idly if the two bodies will meet. Maybe they'll bump into each other on their 'journey.' Smirking at the thought, he turns on his heel, quick strides crossing the pavement. The next job requires preparation, and he does not like to remain idle. In a voice just loud enough to carry, he shouts back. "See you next time." Barking out a laugh, Jeego tilts his head back to the gray sky. "Yeah." Stabbing his cigarette out on the railing, he flicks it into the water, watching it tumble end over end until a slap of the cold water snatches it. Glancing downstream, he spots a young blonde emerge from one of the lakeside houses. A patchy blur at best, he guesses she's the recent acquisition that's been so famous. Might as well do some people watching. 

 

It's not like he'll get very much out of it, but there's nothing in the world like that sense of being watched, and that combined with the body that'll be making an appearance tomorrow morning, should be enough to send her pleading to her husband, why can't they just move to another one of his properties, he has so many after all. Yeah, the client sure would like that. A lot of eyes on that riverside mansion. It only makes sense that someone would come in and snap it up, despite whatever grisly thing might have happened there. Yeah, should be a big chunk of cash coming in tomorrow, especially if that little blonde gets all the sobs and tears just right. Laughing to himself, Jeego lights another cigarette, his eyes never leaving the blonde woman, her gaudy red dress serving as a beacon even his ruined eyes can't miss. 


End file.
